Regional differences on children, corporal punishment

Among the many recent controversies surrounding the National Football League is the case of Adrian Peterson, who was recently indicted for beating his 4-year-old son with a tree branch, which the player characterized as a form of discipline. A new NBC/Marist poll gauged public attitudes on this and related issues, and some of the results were unexpected.

For example, the poll asked respondents, “Do you think it is right or wrong for parents to discipline their children by striking them – either with a paddle, switch, or belt?” Overall, 60% consider it wrong, while only 34% believe it’s right. But like Judd Legum, I found the demographic differences amazing.

Every group of Americans, regardless of age, race, gender, education, marital status, or income felt largely the same way: striking children, respondents said, is wrong. But note what happens when the results are broken up by region:

It turns out, Southerners were literally the only group in the entire poll in which a majority of respondents said striking children is appropriate.

NBC’s Mark Murray highlighted some of the other results, specifically as they related to the NFL:

So much for all that outrage. Nearly 90 percent of Americans say the recent outcry about domestic violence in the NFL hasn’t changed how much professional football they watch – and less than a third of the nation believes NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell should resign.

That’s the result of an exclusive NBC News/Marist poll, which also finds that a majority of Americans – including nearly six in 10 self-described football fans – say they disapprove of the way the NFL has handled the domestic-violence allegations.